


King of Second Chances and One More Tries

by t_hens



Series: reddie [13]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Anal Sex, Consensual Sex, Eddie Kaspbrak Lives, F/M, First Time, Fix It, Loss of Virginity, M/M, Minor Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Minor Bill Denbrough/Mike Hanlon, Resurrection, Soft Eddie Kaspbrak, Soft Richie Tozier, Stanley Uris Lives, Vaginal Sex, can I get uhhhh orgy with a side of resurrection pls, using fuck you as a love language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-02-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:40:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22880413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/t_hens/pseuds/t_hens
Summary: ‘thereisa ritual, but it wouldn’t work even if we tried it.”“Why?”Mike shifted in his seat, like he didn’t want to talk about it. “Because you need a virgin for the ritual, and seeing as how none of us are virgins, we couldn’t do it even if we wanted.”Everyone seemed to accept this, but Eddie could feel the way that Richie tensed up next to him.“You okay, Rich?”‘
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Richie Tozier, Beverly Marsh/Richie Tozier, Bill Denbrough/Richie Tozier, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Mike Hanlon/Richie Tozier
Series: reddie [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1534337
Comments: 5
Kudos: 202





	King of Second Chances and One More Tries

**Author's Note:**

> idk what this is other than a hot mess ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> big shoutout to moody for dealing with me whining about this and giving me such wonderful feedback <3 ty ly bb

It takes seconds - five at the most - but it feels like a lifetime as Eddie presses his lips to Richie’s in a desperate bid to break him out of the Deadlights. It had worked for Bev and Ben, Eddie hoped it would work for them.

And by some miracle, Eddie began to feel Richie respond to the kiss. Eddie leaned back, joy making his face ache where his recently acquired stab wound was.

“I did it Rich! I saved you!” Eddie screamed, grabbing ahold of Richie by the lapels of his jacket and shaking him.

Richie moved so quickly the breath was knocked out of his lungs as he was rolled along the uneven, rocky, surface. 

“Dude what the fuck? That hurt! I’m gonna hav-”

Richie’s hand covered Eddies mouth as he looked around the dark cavern. Eddie’s eyes followed where his eyes fell - to where the rest of the Losers were screaming and heckling the clown.

“I told them about the leper Rich. I told them I made him feel small. You were caught in the Deadlights and I saved you!” 

Eddie knew he sounded hysterical, but Richie still hadn’t said a word, which was _very_ unRichie-like. 

“So you’re okay?” He finally asked, hands patting down Eddie’s body making him wince.

“Yeah dickhead, except where you somehow managed to hit all the bruises on my body at once.” Eddie sniffed dramatically, looking up at where Richie was still hovered over him.

“Hey you two! Come help us crush this fuckers heart,” Bev called from where the rest of them had crowded in the center of the crater.

“Shall we?” Richie asked, failing miserably at trying to make his voice to stop shaking.

“You’re so dumb,” Eddie complained, although he still took the hand that was outstretched to help him up, not letting it go until they were forced to part to climb out of the sewers.

-

Hours later, everyone freshly showered and in clean clothes, they gathered in the lounge of the townhouse, spreading out on the various pieces of furniture, each with a glass of liquor in their hands.

“Can’t believe it’s over now,” Bev said quietly as her free hand stroked through the still wet strands of Ben’s hair. 

“Good riddance as far as I’m concerned,” Eddie said into his tumbler of gin.

“Yeah, I’m never coming back to this stupid town ever again. I’ve had my fill of murderous assholes for a lifetime.” Richie’s hair somehow was even wilder than it had been in the sewers, as if he’d been running his hands through it and tugging on it. Eddie’s fingers twitched around his glass, itching to reach across the couch they were sharing to tame them. To run his fingers through and see if it was as soft as it looked.

“You really think there’s not murderous assholes in LA? We must live in different parts of the city,” Bill grumbled. 

He and Mike were sharing the love seat, not bothering to hide the way their hands were clasped together on top of Mike’s thigh. Eddie looked over to where Ben and Bev were cosied up on the floor, and then looked over to Richie, who was sitting too far for Eddie’s liking. He let the sting of alcohol carry him over the empty cushion next to Richie, nuzzling into his side and sighing happily when an arm was draped over his shoulder.

“Wow Spaghetti, is this a special occasion? You haven’t elbowed me or called me a name in like, ten minutes.”

Eddie huffed and buried his face into the warmth of Richie’s chest, trying not to laugh too hard and dislodge the carefully threaded stitches Bev put in his cheek. “Too tired to elbow you, but if it’ll make you feel better, you’re an asshole.”

Richie’s body shook with silent laughter and he squeezed the arm around Eddie, pulling him a little closer. 

It was quiet for a while, everyone lost in their own thoughts. They weren’t really a quiet bunch, but it was nice to revel in the comfort they brought each other. Eddie was letting himself be lulled to sleep by the steady beat of Richie’s heart in his ear when Mike spoke.

“Wish Stan was here.”

His voice was solemn but steady. Eddie felt a stab of guilt when he thought of how miserable Mike must have been here alone, remembering all of the shitty things the rest of them got to forget. Stan not being there was hard on everyone, but Eddie thought that maybe it hit Mike the most since he was the last to speak to him.

“I kind of hoped, when we killed It,” Ben started, voice steady although the low lights of the lounge made his misty eyes shine bright, “That like, Stan would get to come back? Like maybe since It was gone, things would be reversed?”

“I think we all hoped that,” Bev told him, nestling her head on his shoulder. 

“I’m surprised you never suggested a wild orgy to bring him back,” Richie said to Mike, using his free arm to do a crude motion like he was jerking off, “And with this final nut bust, I command you return from the dead, Staniel!”

“God, you’re so dumb,” Eddie said even as he giggled. Maybe it was the gin, or maybe it was intoxicating feeling of being pressed against Richie, but he felt a lot more relaxed than he had, probably ever.

Mike chuckled and gave Richie a good natured eye roll. “First of all, you’re gross. Second of all, there _is_ a ritual, but it wouldn’t work even if we tried it.”

“Why?”

Mike shifted in his seat, like he didn’t want to talk about it. “Because you need a virgin for the ritual, and seeing as how none of us are virgins, we couldn’t do it even if we wanted.”

Everyone seemed to accept this, but Eddie could feel the way that Richie tensed up next to him. 

“You okay, Rich?” 

Richie looked down at Eddie and then back up to the rest of the group. They waited for him to speak, to make some joke about how he hadn’t been a virgin since he hit puberty, but instead he looked a bit green, like he was about to lose the meger dinner they’d scraped together from the pantry.

“Yeah, I uh-”

“Richie, are you a virgin?” Bev asked, voice gentle. 

His eyes darted around everyone’s faces quickly, not settling on anyone until his eyes met Eddie’s and he blew out a deep breath.

“Yeah.” It was so quiet that Eddie barely heard him sitting right next to him, but everyone seemed to understand anyway. “And like, might as well get it all out there, I’m gay too.”

It was a lot of information for Eddie’s tired brain, but he went with his gut and placed his drink down onto the coffee table and took Richie’s too before pulling him into a bruising hug.

“Thank you for telling us,” he said quietly.

He could feel Richie’s shoulders shaking and held him tighter, not even caring that his tears were gonna stain his shirt and he probably had snot on him now. It didn’t really matter. Richie held him right back, like he was scared if he let go, Eddie would disappear.

One by one, everyone else clamored around them and hugged Richie until they were just a big huddle of arms and warm, clean skin. Once he was calmed down, Richie lifted his head from Eddie’s shoulder and smiled at all of them sheepishly, “Thanks guys.”

They distangled themselves but didn’t move away, just rearranging themselves to all be smushed together on the couch. Everyone drank and talked quietly amongst themselves until Richie cleared his throat and looked at Mike.

“So, what does this ritual entail exactly? Because if I’m gonna be sacrificed, that doesn’t seem very fair.” His words had the cadence of a joke, but the effect was a bit ruined by the way his voice shook.

“It uh-” Mike started, staring down at his glass. “In order for the ritual to work, the virgin,” his eyes darted to Richie and then back down again, “the virgin has to have sex with everyone who is a part of the ritual.”

The words hung in the air, a thrumming energy weaving its way through them while they all soaked up the words. 

“We _obviously_ don’t have to do it, Rich, it’s okay if you don’t want-”

“I want to,” Richie cut him off, making everyone turn to stare at him. He dropped his head and picked at the fraying hem on the couch. 

“Rich,” Bill started, but Richie cut him off. 

“No, listen. I can do this, I can help bring Stan back.” Everyone looked at him and though his cheeks were blazing, he sat up a little straighter and nodded his head. “Besides, if I’m gonna lose it, it might as well be in an orgy with all of my best friends right?”

The tension broke as everyone started giggling and they all took in a deep breath, letting what was happening soak in. 

-

Everyone gathered into Richie’s room, shuffling around while they waited for instructions from Mike, who had one of those old books he always seemed to be carrying around. The guy was really taking the librarian thing seriously.

“Okay, so it says that each person who was a part of the original ritual, which is all of us, need to take turns um-” he glanced at Richie before looking back at the book, “bringing you to completion.” His dark skin was aglow with a blush and he looked at Richie apologetically. “You can still back out, you know.”

Richie nodded, “I know. But I want to. Anything to bring Stan back.” Everyone nodded in agreement. “I do have a question though. Like, I know I’m a virgin so this is all gonna be over soon, but I’m still forty, I don’t think I can come, five times in a row.”

Mike looked sheepish, rubbing the back of his neck and looking at Bill nervously, “Uh, there’s a drink we’re supposed to take, to um, help us complete it.”

“Does this mean you’re gonna drug me again?” Bill complained, nuding Mike.

“Is it still drugging if you’re aware it’s happening?” Ben pondered as he pulled off his t-shirt. Eddie tried not to let the jealousy he felt as he watched Richie’s eyes rake over his toned skin show on his face.

“It’s not like the other one,” Mike promised Bill, giving him a fond smile. “It’s kinda like natural stimulant.”

“Yay, organic Viagra,” Richie snorted. 

-

It took a while before everything was ready. Mike had to go to the library and get the root, while Bill and Ben went to the store to get condoms and lube since no one had thought to bring any along on their clown killing mission. 

Once everyone was back they all started undressing which was a surreal experience. Eddie had seen everyone in the room almost naked before, and in the case of Bill and Richie, who he’d both known since he could remember, he’d seen them both naked several times when they were kids, but it felt distinctly different now. They’d never undressed around each other with the intent being sexual. 

Richie was looking more and more nervous as the seconds ticked by, and Eddie was worried he might puke before anything even got started.

“You okay?” Eddie asked as he took off one of his socks. Richie was down to his boxers but was holding himself around the knees, as if trying to shield himself from everyone. 

“Never better Eds,” he said, though his smile was far too tight to be genuine. Eddie had spent most of his childhood learning all the different meanings of Richie’s facial expressions and he knew how nervous Richie was by the way a muscle kept twitching on his jaw.

He didn’t get to respond though, because Mike was passing around a cup that looked like it was just water, but given the way everyone’s faces scrunched up in displeasure, it didn’t taste like water. Eddie’s mouth revolted against the taste, but he drank it down anyway, passing the glass to Richie who downed the rest. 

He grimaced at the taste, but finished it and set the glass down. “Okay, lets rock and roll.”

“Who do you want to go first?” Bev asked as she slid her pajama pants down her thighs, her skin just as freckled as Eddie remembered. 

Richie looked stricken, looking around to them all and looking very much like he’d rather get shot than answer, so Eddie went with his gut and placed his hand on Richie’s shoulder. 

“I will, if that’s okay with you?”

He just nodded, though Eddie didn’t think that he imagined the way he Richie’s breath hitched when he’d answered.

“Okay, the root should start to take here soon, and then we’ll kind of just rotate, I guess,” Mike told them as he set the lube and condoms next to where they sat on the bed. “Richie, if you change your mind at any point just tell us okay?”

Richie nodded again and closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath. “Are you guys staying in here?”

“We can leave if you’d like.”

“No, no, I want you guys to stay.” Richie cracked an eye open and gave them a dopey smile. “Wanna be close to you guys.”

The root must have started to kick in, because Eddie understood what he meant. The idea of any of them leaving made Eddie want to make an embarrassing whine of protest.

Eddie moved himself closer to Richie and nuzzled into his neck, suddenly desperate for his touch. He felt like he was dying of thirst in the desert and Richie’s body was the only thing that would bring him relief.

“Fuck,” Richie whispered, voice even deeper than before. It sent a shock of arousal through Eddie so violently his body actually twitched. 

“Oh, Rich,” Eddie sighed into his neck, abandoning all pretense and straddling him.

“Fuck, _Eddie_.”

Eddie caught his lips with his own and started kissing him, not holding anything back. Richie took everything Eddie gave him and returned it in full. His hands skated up Eddie’s thighs and then carded themselves into his hair.

Distantly, Eddie could hear the others murmuring in low voices and the sound of lips other than their own meeting. If you’d asked Eddie an hour ago if he ever thought he would be planning on sleeping with his best friend while the rest of his best friends made out around them, he would have laughed in your face. But now, Eddie couldn’t believe how lucky he was. The love everyone had for the other felt like a tangible thing that they could grasp in their hands while they grasped for each other. Could part of this be the root they drank? Sure, he supposed, but he had a feeling it really had to do with how much they loved each other and would do anything for one another.

“Wanted this for so long,” Richie whispered in his ear, moving his lips to press against his neck.

“An orgy?” Eddie asked, confused but unable to lend more brainpower to the thought as he was focusing on sucking a hickey to the base of Richie’s throat.

Richie laughed, the sound like music to Eddie’s ears and he grinned against his neck. “No, Eds. _You_.”

A whine left Eddie’s throat and he was kissing Richie again, more insistent this time. He was suddenly so desperate to be with Richie, to be all that he felt and heard and saw. There had always been something pulling them to each other, and Eddie wondered what it would have been like to not have missed out on all those years with each other, but he couldn’t do anything about it now. 

What he _could_ do was show Richie just how much of a piece of his heart had belonged to him all that time, even when Eddie has been unaware of it until he’d seen Richie’s face again at the restaurant.

The mattress dipped beside them and they both glanced over to see Bev straddling Ben while they panted and kissed each other’s mouths. Bill and Mike were still standing but by the way they were gripping each other, it wouldn't take long for them to join the rest of them on the bed.

Richie was starting to make even more desperate noises right into Eddie's ear and was thrusting his hips against his stomach, a sharp whine leaving him when Eddie reached between them and into his boxers to grip his cock, giving it a gentle squeeze.

“Fuck, Eddie _please_.”

Something in Eddie’s brain snapped to attention and he reached around blindly with his free hand to find the lube. He had to shift off of Richie to lay him down gently before tugging off his boxers and starting to slick up his fingers. 

He moved to hover over Richie, whispering, “Hey,” against his lips. 

His eyes were closed tightly and Eddie was worried for a moment that things had gone too far, but Richie opened them the slightest amount to smile at Eddie.

“We gonna do this or what Spaghetti Head?” He asked, spreading his legs a little farther apart so Eddie got a front row seat to the place Richie was the most vulnerable.

“Fuck,” Eddie said, scrambling to press their lips together. 

He slowly moved his hands to Richie’s rim, circling it slowly just to draw out a desperate sound out of him. Richie was too tight for more than the tip of Eddie's finger, but he was happy to take his time and make sure Richie enjoyed it. He deserved to know just how loved and adored he was; how much Eddie loved him.

After a few minutes, the whole room was filled with whines and moans from all of them, the root streaming through their bloodstreams and making them _want_ in a way that seemed too powerful for their bodies.

Richie had loosened up enough that Eddie was up to his second finger and was slowly pulling out and pressing back in, fucking him with his fingers slowly - lovingly. There was a chorus of deep throaty whines leaving Richie that made Eddie feel drunk with arousal. His erection tented his boxers he hadn’t bothered taking off yet. He was so focused on making things good for Richie that his own pleasure a second thought.

-

Once three fingers were moving smoothly in and out of Richie’s hole, Eddie rolled on a condom with shaky hands. His eyes skirted over to Ben, where his hand was moving slowly between Bev’s thighs, the cause of quiet whines she was letting out. Eddie thought distantly that if he was _really_ into women, not in the ‘I had to get married and pretend to enjoy straight sex’ type of way, the sight would probably really do something for him. He could logically understand that she was beautiful, but Eddie turned back towards where Richie was laying waiting for him, and he knew nothing would ever hold a candle to him. 

“You ready?” Eddie asked as he adjusted their bodies until the tip of his dick was at Richie’s rim. He waited until he got a nod of affirmation and a quiet: “I’m ready,” before sliding in slow. 

All Eddie could think as he pressed in deeper, was ‘fuck, I’m fucking Richie. He’s so tight and beautiful, I love him so much.’ The words went round and round in his head, bouncing around in his skull but he couldn’t devote too much attention to them, as he was doing his best to focus on the way Richie was sighing in pleasure and pulling Eddie in close to kiss him.

-

At some point after Eddie bottomed out and got into an actual rhythm, the others had gathered around and were taking turns stroking Richie’s hair and kissing him. Ben rubbed his fingers across the bumps of his ribs, making him shiver and clench around Eddie hard enough that it took a few seconds until he got his breath back.

“Eddie,” Richie breathed, pulling him in closer. It was a tight fit to lay himself down when Bill and Mike were taking turns sucking bruises onto his collarbones, but he managed so that they could kiss like Richie wanted.

As Eddie thrusted, he felt himself brush against Richie’s prostate and was rewarded but a sob of pleasure. He adjusted himself so that every time he thrusted up it would make contact and it only took a few more well placed thrusts and Bev reaching down and giving Richie’s cock two tight strokes before he was coming and throwing his head back.

Eddie followed seconds behind, not able to resist the hot, achingly tight way that Richie clenched around him. He filled the condom and collapsed on Richie’s chest. Everyone murmured in soft voices around them, the bed dipping as they got up to grab wipes and towels to clean the two of them up.

-

Richie was hard and aching by the time he was cleaned up. Eddie was still feeling drunk and wobbly-legged, but he stayed close, not wanting to be away from any of them, but especially not Richie. He laid next to him on the bed and pulled him for a long and languid kiss that helped to ease the rush of need he was sure Richie was feeling. 

Mike had taken Eddie’s place and was sitting up on his knees between Richie’s thighs, rolling a condom onto his weeping cock. Eddie’s cock gave a half-hearted twitch at the sight because, fuck, all of his friends were fucking hot and he had drank some sort of Nature’s Made Viagra, sue him.

Using his ridiculously muscled arms, Mike lifted Richie so his legs were draped over his thighs and he straddling him while his top half remained on the bed. It was awkward for about half a second, before Mike slid inside in one smooth motion and Richie was arching even higher off the bed and practically screaming. Eddie kissed him again, unable to resist and he could feel the others’ body’s around him but he was focused on swallowing all of the delicious whines leaving Richie. 

It didn’t take much more and Richie was coming again. It seemed just as intense as the first and Eddie made a mental note to make sure Richie drank lots of water after this. He was already starting to sag tiredly into the bed, but he nodded as Ben approached him with a inquisitive eyebrow and a condom in his hand.

Ben made quick work about it, rolling the rubber on and adjusting a little so he could hover over Richie and make out with Bev who was petting Richie’s sweat soaked hair. Mike was blowing Bill next to them and Eddie tried not to snort about how absolutely insane this trip had turned out. 

-

Bev was next and she slowly lowered herself over Richie’s condom covered dick and rode him hard and quick, straight to the point and no bullshit like always. Ben rubbed his fingers against her clit as she rode and it only took about two minutes for them both to be coming with shouts. Ben helped her off and they moved to spoon on the end of the bed while Bill lubed himself up.

“Hold on,” Richie said as he tried to sit up. 

Eddie and Mike helped him turn on his stomach so he could clutch a pillow to his chest. He wiggled his butt and gave Bill a coy smile. “Let’s see what you got Billiam.”

Bill huffed out a fond/annoyed laugh and pushed in, his eyes falling shut at the feeling. They moved in tandem with each other, Richie more relaxed on his front. The friction of his cock rubbing against the duvet beneath him had him coming the quickest this time, not even needing to be touched. 

-

It was apparent almost immediately that something was happening. 

The air was practically vibrating around them and the lamps on the bedside tables glowed so bright it was painful, but then something snapped and the lightbulbs popped, making everyone jump. Bill pulled out carefully as to not hurt Richie and they all stared around the room, as if waiting for Stanley to magically appear. 

Seconds, maybe minutes, maybe hours, passed before the shrill sound of Mike’s cell phone ringing broke them out of it. When he picked it up, his breath caught in his throat and he answered it in a quaking voice, “Stan?”

They were close enough they could tell there was a voice on the other end, so everyone clamoured towards Mike, yelling Stan’s name and demanding to talk to him. The call was put on speaker phone and everyone quieted when the voice started speaking.

“Hey guys,” came a voice that was just so achingly _familiar_ , Eddie knew he would have recognized it anywhere. 

“Stan,” Richie sobbed. Eddie pulled him against his side and let him cry into his shoulder while Eddie focused back on the phone. “What happened Stan?” he asked.

Stan sighed, sounding like he was a thousand years old. “I woke up and I was in the tub, but there wasn’t like any-” he hesitated but everyone knew what he meant. 

“So you’re okay?” Bev asked. 

“Yeah,” he answered, sounding like he was very much going to start crying. “I don’t know what you guys did to save me, but thank you. I love you guys, I’m so sorry.”

“We’ll fill you in some day,” Mike told them, not bothering to hide his tears.

Everyone was crying by that point, saying their ‘I love you’s’ and assurances that they would be getting together as soon as possible. They ended the call and everyone slumped all at once, as if the weight of the world was suddenly lifted off of their shoulders.

“We did it,” Richie said tiredly. He was hoarse and had purple shadows under his eyes but he looked happy, the fatigue unable to hide the joy in his expression. 

“It was you Rich, we couldn’t have done it without you.” Eddie told him, rubbing his hand up and down his back.

There were murmurs of agreement around him and Richie pressed his face into Eddie’s neck and sobbed while they all held him.

-

Georgia was hot as fuck and _humid_ and Eddie never thought he’d hate a city more than New York but at least there he could go outside without feeling like he was swimming in his own sweat.

Patty, Stan’s lovely wife, had welcomed them all into her house with a friendly, though slightly bemused smile, nodding knowingly at their flimsy excuses about wanting to reconnect with old friends.

Stan had told them on the phone a few hours later that night that Patty didn’t know anything had happened. He said he woke up when she came to check that he hadn’t fallen asleep in the tub. It seemed that the past few days hadn’t happened at all to the world outside of Derry, but Eddie was beyond pretending like he knew anything about the universe and how it worked.

-

Bill, Bev and Eddie all took turns standing in the Uris’ neatly trimmed and landscaped backyard talking to their respective divorce lawyers. Richie had made a joke about getting a cake and having a divorce party for the three of them and Patty had presented a simple chocolate cake that night after dessert that read ‘Happy Divorce’ in bright red lettering. Stan had smirked all too knowingly at all of them as they sat paired around the table.

There hadn’t been much time in between killing the clown and having an actual fucking orgy and rushing straight to Atlanta for Richie and Eddie to have a proper conversation about everything that had happened, but they’d been attached at the hip, not bothering to seperate unless they had to shower or use the bathroom.

They were sitting close enough at the table that everytime Richie moved to take a bite or grab his wine glass Eddie could feel it jostling him, but he didn’t want to move away. There was twenty-seven years of touching Richie that he had gotten robbed of and was determined to start making up for it.

-

When everyone was yawning and they’d help Patty and Stan clean up after dinner they left to their respective sleeping spaces. There were only two extra rooms in the house, which were immediately claimed by Mike and Bill and Richie. Eddie was contimplating which couch was the least likely to murder his back when he felt Richie tugging on the sleeve of his sweater.

“C’mon Spagheds, you can crash in my room.”

The words were casual and that special blend of teasing and fondness that he used pretty exclusively for Eddie, but it still made his heart thud painfully in his chest.

“K,” he said faintly, letting Richie tow him up the stairs. When he caught Stan’s eye as they passed him in the hall he had to resist smacking off the self-satisfied smirk he gave them as they entered Richie’s room together. Freaking prick. Guess he wasn’t the only one who hadn’t changed much since childhood.

-

Eddie’s bags were waiting in the room right next to Richie’s worn duffle bag. Richie gave him a sheepish smile and a shrug when Eddie raised an eyebrow at him. 

“Didn’t think you’d wanna sleep in the living room with Benverly. I’m sure they have plenty of make up sex to get cracking on.”

As he finished the sentence there came a _thump_ and muffled giggling from the room that Mike and Bill were sharing and Eddie’s cheek flushed. 

“Guess they’re not the only ones,” Richie snorted. He moved around where Eddie was standing still in the middle of the room and started digging for pajamas. 

He was undressing and changing before Eddie had even snapped out of it. The sound of Richie’s zipper being pulled down was like the sound of a shotgun. Eddie’s breath caught and Richie turned to give him a guilty look.

“Shit, sorry. I’ll change in the bathroom.”

He started to regather his clothes but Eddie took the bundle out of his hands and threw it on the bed. 

“What’s up, Eds?” 

Richie looked nervous, almost scared, and Eddie’s mind was filled with memories of the same looking crossing his face when Eddie would stubbornly climb beside him in the hammock, making room where there wasn’t any. It was a terrifyingly hopeful look and Eddie couldn’t resist pulling him in for a kiss to wipe the look away.

They kissed and kissed for so long when they finally parted Eddie was sure his lips were just as swollen and kiss-bruised as Richie’s were. His big hands were gripping at Eddie’s waist, making him feel safe and secure, feelings he wasn’t exactly familiar with.

“I love you, and I’m sorry that I never told you before, when we were young. I loved you when we were like ten, and I loved you even when I didn’t remember you. It’s you Rich, it’s always been you.”

Richie was full on sobbing by the time Eddie had finished his rapid fire sentences and had stopped to draw in a breath. Eddie held him close, hoping desperately that they were _happy_ tears.

It took a few seconds before he moved further enough away from Eddie that he could properly see his face. He gave Eddie a watery smile before kissing him again quickly, pulling back right away. 

“So, when you say you love me, you’re meaning in like a ‘Richie you’re such a stud and I want to spend the rest of my life plowing that ass’ type of way right?”

Eddie punched his shoulder and rolled his eyes, but he pressed in closer. “You’re a fucking moron, I can’t believe I’m gonna spend the rest of my life dealing with your dumb ass.”

Richie looked delighted and Eddie could feel the heat flooding his cheeks but he just shoved his face against Richie’s chest and sighed deeply. “That’s not a proposal, by the way,” he mumbled into his t-shirt. “The real one will be much better.”

“Spaghetti, you’re making all my gay dreams come true. I got kissed by the handsome prince to break me out of the ugly witch’s curse and now we get to live happily ever after in a castle in the Big Apple.”

Eddie leaned back, quirking an eyebrow. “I figured we’d be living happily ever after in LA?”

“Well, my prince,” he grabbed Eddie’s hand and tried and failed to spin him, having to scramble so he wouldn’t fall on his ass, “your wish is my command.”

“Would you guys do this mushy romantic bullshit in the damn morning?” Bill yelled through the wall, which only resulted in Eddie and Richie yelling back even louder until Stan screamed at them to shut the fuck up and go to sleep.

Eddie sighed happily as they tucked himself into the bed, twining their limbs together. There was the distant sound of traffic and the bird clock Stan had downstairs was chirping quietly, and Eddie let the soft sounds of Richie’s heartbeat in his ear lull him into the best night of sleep he’d ever had in his life.


End file.
